These are turning out quite tasty indeed. Takes a bite. Types. Takes a bite. Repeat.

My goal was to get a thinner pancake. I’m not a huge pancake person but every once in awhile I crave a good pancake. It seems though, that what I consider a ‘perfect’ pancake is not what most of the recipes evolve to. This goes for vegan and non-vegan pancakes alike. I really seem to like a pancake that is between 1/8″ and 1/4″, if we want to get technical.

I blame my Grandpa. It’s his pancakes I have etched into my brain. After all they came in many different shapes, with many that resembled a certain mouse, Mickey. I also get my orneriness from him, it goes well with the twinkle in my eye.

I’ve made pancakes twice in the last 6 months, three if we count today. The first ones were probably in April and were a vegan version that came my way through Blendtec’s weekly recipe newsletter.

The recipe goes like this:

Blendtec’s Vegan Banana Pancakes: 1 ½ C water, ⅓ C raw almonds, 2 Tbsp brown sugar (packed), 1 tsp vanilla extract, ½ tsp kosher or sea salt, ¼ tsp ground cinnamon, 2 ripe bananas, 2 C whole white wheat flour, 2 ½ tsp baking powder. Add first 6 ingredients to WildSide Jar and secure lid. Select “Whole Juice”. Add remaining ingredients in order listed and secure lid. Select “Batters”. Allow batter to rest 5 minutes. Heat griddle or other pan over medium heat and grease. Pour approximately ⅓ cup batter onto heated pan and cook until bubbles break the surface of the pancake and the underside is golden brown. Flip and cook until done. Repeat with remaining batter. To prepare in the FourSide Jar, follow directions above except when adding the last 3 ingredients use “Pulse” until batter is smooth. You may need to use a spatula to scrape sides of jar.

These tasted good but were way too thick for my tastes, like a thick slab of bread. I feel like if I wanted bread I would be eating bread but I wanted a pancake! Does this make sense to anyone else? Want to join my crazy train?

The most recent recipe was about 2 weeks ago and was straight off the Bob’s Red Mill Buttermilk Pancake & Waffle Whole Grain Mix. I made them in mostly the traditional way by using eggs but did use unsweetened almond milk instead of milk (because we never ever buy milk), thinking for sure thick pancakes could be blamed on the vegan version I attempted. Not so.

Bob’s Red Mill Buttermilk Pancake Recipe: 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Buttermilk Pancake and Waffle Mix, 1 egg, 1 tablespoon oil, 3/4 cup cold milk. Blend pancake mix, egg, oil and cold milk. Mix just until blended. Cook on preheated griddle at medium heat. Flip the pancakes when edges begin to brown and bubbles show in the center.

These were also thick, as well as dense. Sigh.

Which brings us to the present. Sometimes you have to scrap another’s version to create your own perfection. These are vegetarian at best, the mix has buttermilk in it as well as my addition of yogurt. If you have a favorite vegan mix let us know in the comments! The yogurt could easily be subbed for a soy, almond or coconut yogurt OR maybe even just the addition of a squeeze of lemon – for tartness. Next time I’ll be looking for this, Bob’s Red Mill Organic 7 Grain Pancake & Waffle, Whole Grain Mix; has anyone tried it? I’m curious if it will need more liquid as it’s composed of heartier denser ‘better for you’ grains.

I’m very happy with this first attempt! They were thin, gorgeous and completely flavorful, tasting like buttermilk banana bread, without the bread texture. Cooking them long and slow made for perfectly cooked pancake with just a hint of banana yogurt moistness through the middle.

Due to cooking them in coconut oil, there wasn’t any need to to smother them with a traditional fat spread on top. I used a splash of organic maple syrup on one, a sprinkle of chocolate chips on another and had dreams of a quick puree or mash of fruit on future leftovers.

I’m curious…how do you like your pancakes? Thick, thin, or is a pancake just a vessel for syrup, butter and whip cream??? My Dad would pick the last one. 😉 and please share any favorite links or tips on how you make the perfect pancake! 

XOXO

P.s. These taste delicious cold too!